Inspectors: Inspecting is Easy - Writing is Hard!

Special for Home Inspectors

Home Inspectors: Report Writing 101

By: Alan Carson, Carson Dunlop

Introduction

We all like inspecting houses. It's fun and challenging and we are really good at seeing things that mere mortals can't. The "show and tell" with clients is rewarding, and the appreciation they feel at the end of the process gives us real job satisfaction.

But, let's be honest; most of us don't get the same high from writing reports. Why is that? Well, there are several reasons:

*      Most of us are not trained and experienced as technical writers, so although we know a lot more about houses than our clients, we may not know more about writing.

*      Most people spend much more time communicating verbally than in writing, so it's only natural that we are better at speaking. Writing is more work because it doesn't come as naturally.

*      Writing is a more challenging medium because it does not include tools like tone of voice, volume, speed and tempo, hand gestures, body language, and the immediate feedback provided when speaking face to face.

*      Writing inspection reports is hard because we have to take complex technical issues and make them easy to understand.

*      Because the report is the permanent record, writing it is more intimidating than inspecting. When writing a report, you don't get the feedback that allows you to clarify or reword an explanation. You get one chance to get it right.

*      It is hard to remember everything that was discussed at the inspection. Most of us have left something out of an inspection report at least once. Our memories and handwritten notes can be imperfect. The fear of omission adds stress to the report writing process.

*      Another difficulty is the selection process. What do you tell clients and what do you leave out? If you documented all of the thought processes and decisions you made during the inspection, the report would be very long indeed. And if you included every word you said to your client, the report would be enormous. The filtering process creates anxiety because leaving something out creates a risk of being sued. On the other hand, putting in something you did not discuss on site creates a different sort of risk - a very unhappy client.

*      And did we mention that the English language is a particularly difficult one to use? There are a myriad of rules and almost as many exceptions to those rules.

These issues have been carefully researched and developed since 1978 along with our overall definition of a home inspection, based on doing thousands of reports every year. We have worked hard to come up with a definition of home inspection that includes appropriate reference to the report writing process. The definition is as follows: A business with illogically high liability, slim profit margins and limited economies of scale. An incredibly diverse, multi-disciplined consulting service, delivered under difficult in-field circumstances, before a hostile audience in an impossibly short time frame, requiring the production of an extraordinarily detailed technical report, almost instantly, without benefit of research facilities or resources.

To sum it up, writing a report is a challenging process that provides an excellent opportunity to look foolish and to get sued. But we have to do it to help our clients (since they'll only remember 10 to 15% of what was said), to meet inspection standards or licensing requirements, and to compete in the market place. So, how do we minimize the pain and maximize the gain? Let's start by looking at what we are trying to accomplish, and move on to some ways to succeed. We'll discuss report writing in general, and touch on various report formats.

What are we trying to Accomplish?

1.       Help clients make an important buying decision

2.       Make it easy for clients to address the defects after they settle in

3.       Reduce our chances of being sued successfully

4.       Satisfy association requirements

5.       Market our business - differentiate ourselves with an outstanding report

What do Clients want in an Inspection Report?

Based on tens of thousands of inspections, we have learned what our clients are looking for.

1.       Clarity - everything should be relevant, and there should be no extra words

2.       Sound advice and no surprises

3.       Brevity - pictures are worth 1,000 words

4.       The ability to make the right decision in the shortest time

What would we want to read when making a Decision?

We put ourselves in our clients' shoes and came up with this list of what we would want.

1.       A short executive summary

2.       Clear, simple communication

3.       Give me the important stuff first - newspaper articles deliver all the key facts in the first paragraph

4.       Allow me, but don't force me, to drill down to get in-depth information where I choose

5.       No jargon or tech terms without translation

6.       Navigation tools that let me know where I am and let me move anywhere easily

What do you want when writing Reports?

We have asked hundreds of inspectors what they are looking for. These are the top answers we have received.

1.       Fast, because time is money

2.       Easy to say what I want - flexibility

3.       A finished product I will be proud of

4.       Easy to move around quickly so I can work system-by-system or room-by-room

5.       Easy to see what I have and have not done

6.       A reminder system if I forget something

7.       A search tool to help me quickly find what I need

8.       Templates for typical homes, systems or problems that I can set myself

9.       No double entry of inspection data, client data, inspection address, fee etc.

What Would the Ideal Report Look Like?

1.       From the home inspector's perspective - If we could write what we wanted, it might look something like this: